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“Joe” of Into The Midst Ministries, has a different message for those choosing to go to Drag Queen Story Hour at the Lafayette Library on Saturday, A far larger number of people turned out to show their support for the program and provide them a buffer with a wall of umbrellas. Cliff Grassmick / Staff Photographer

Catherine Powers walks to the library with her kids, Jasper and Olympia, with an umbrella escort. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

A mother and her two children get an umbrella escort into the library. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Jasper and Olympia, were thrilled to meet Ashley the unicorn as they entered the library. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Two women on the left protested the Drag Queen Storytime. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Stuart Sanks, as Shirley Delta Blow reads to a full house at the Drag Queen Story Time at the Lafayette Library on Saturday.
(Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

“Joe” of Into The Midst Ministries, has a different message for those choosing to go to the storytime. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

David Martinez, right, holds a sign outside the library against having the Drag Queen Storytime. Children and parents were being escorted by people covering them u with umbrellas. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

LAFAYETTE, CO – JANUARY 4, 2020: A wall of about 200 people were outside the library. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.
(Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

Miss Shirley read to the children Saturday morning. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Catherine Powers walks to the library with her kids, Jasper and Olympia, with an umbrella escort. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

David Martinez holds a sign outside the library against having the Drag Queen Storytime. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Another family enters the library. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

“Joe” of Into The Midst Ministries, has a different message for those choosing to go to the storytime. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Diane Lettkeman, left, has a hug for Ashley the unicorn. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

Miss Shirley talks to one of the kids that attended. Miss Shirley read to the children Saturday morning. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

LAFAYETTE, CO – JANUARY 4, 2020: Miss Shirley is introduced to one of the babies that attended. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.
(Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

A wall of about 200 people were outside the library. The third Drag Queen Storytime at the Lafayette Library attracted a large crowd with an umbrella protection wall and escorts to protect kids from groups that protest against the event.

When Stuart Sanks sauntered across the Lafayette Public Library parking lot toward a sea of rainbow umbrellas, he was greeted with cheers as well as shouts from “pro family” protesters whose words seemed only to bounce from his bouffant, pink hair.

Sanks, who also wore a dress with cartoon unicorns, a necklace of over-sized pearls and glittering earrings, was ready to perform as his drag persona: Shirley Delta Blow as part of the library’s Drag Queen Story Hour Saturday morning.

The concept for Drag Queen Story Hour has spread across the nation in an effort to introduce children to “unabashedly queer role models,” according to its website. The event drew roughly 100 children to listen to Sanks read several stories. While this marks the fifth story hour at the Lafayette Public Library, Patty Frobisher, the library’s assistant director , said it is the first to draw protests and stir passions in and outside of the community.

Close to 200 people from the Parasol Patrol, a group of LGBTQ+ supporters, twirled colorful umbrellas outside the library in an effort to shield families entering the building from the roughly 10 people who turned out to oppose the story hour. Those who expressed discontent with the story hour included activists from Colorado MassResistance, a group of “pro family advocates” who called on the library to cancel the event.

No matter what side they were on, Lafayette leaders, the library and Sanks said the story hour was about sending a message of acceptance an love.

Mayor Jamie Harkins was among those who attended the city-sponsored event.

“That’s what these stories teach, is that we should love everyone and we are inclusive,” Harkins said. “Lafayette prides itself on our diversity and support for diversity and that’s why you are seeing such a big crowd today, because they want to take a stand.”

Harkins, who is openly gay, shared the event on her Facebook page, inspiring many protesters on both sides to pack the parking lot Saturday.

Leslie Hanks , of Centennial, was among those who saw the post. Hanks showed up in opposition to the story hour Saturday. Hanks, a grandmother, said she wanted to show her concern for children being exposed to a “deviant lifestyle.”

“I have been following this disturbing trend for quite awhile,” Hanks said. “As a taxpayer, if I lived in this town I would be incensed.”

Deacon Geoff Bennett , the vice president of the Catholic Charities of Denver, said he attended to show support for the children through a prayer and rosary. He said several families reached out to tell him about the event.

Others who joined the opposition included a man who donned a Fear God patch and shouted religious content into a megaphone at the Parasol Patrol. Two people held a sign that read: “Close the book on Drag Queen Story Hour.” At the periphery of the protests were Lafayette police, who kept an eye on the situation throughout the morning.

While the majority of protesters were respectful, some expressed vitriol against Sanks.

“Stop perverting our children,” a man shouted through the library door at Sanks.

Sanks, of Denver, is a third-grade teacher at The Studio School in Northglenn and has read at a number of story hours. In the event of opposition, he said he chooses to focus on those who are there to support him, so as not to detract from the message of the story hour.

“Yes, I’m a man in a dress, but I’m no different than a mascot, somebody who dresses up like a dinosaur for a Rockies game or an actor on a stage,” Sanks said. “The purpose of the event is it is something fun and it’s a chance for people to see ‘Hey, here’s somebody who’s different.’”

Louisville resident Micah Abram attended the story hour with her 7-year-old daughter and some friends. She said she hoped the reading emphasized that “it’s better to go through life with love, than fear.”

“We support people being who they are,” Abram said. “We love all people, just like God does.”

Throughout the story hour Saturday, protesters on both sides continued to chant and cheer outside. While it may have been a first for Lafayette, MassResistance activists have protested Drag Queen Story Hour across the nation since 2018. In January 2019, protesters from MassResistance visited the Windsor library to express their opposition. Further pushback for the story hours was seen in Boulder, when the city posted about a local Drag Queen Story Hour in November 2018.

As they settled on the floor in front of Shirley Delta Blow, noise from the protest outside drifted away as he read aloud “Not Quite Narawhal” by Jessie Sima.

Sanks said more than anything, the event was about connecting children with a good book.

“We get strength from the stories that we read, but also we get to be imaginative and creative,” Sanks said. “I want the kids who come to the story time to be their best selves, whatever that is.”

Stuart Sanks, as Shirley Delta Blow reads to a full house at the Drag Queen Story Time at the Lafayette Library on Saturday.(Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)